By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
A RELATIVE of two Turkish men who have been missing for the past two and half years has criticised authorities, accusing them of “doing nothing” to bring closure to a case allegedly connected to a botched human smuggling operation.
Nayif Gumus, the uncle of Veysi Oral, 25, and cousin Huseyin Oskan, 33, yesterday told The Tribune that his family believes police have not prioritised the matter because they are not Bahamians and are determined to “sweep it under the rug” until everyone forgets about the missing men.
However, Mr Gumus said he will never stop travelling from Canada, where he lives, to New Providence to find answers that will point to what could have happened to the men who were working illegally in Grand Bahama before they attempted to enter the United States. Their relatives living in Canada and Turkey continue to offer a $100,000 reward for any information that might solve this case.
“I have spent around $2,000 on every trip to the Bahamas,” Mr Gumus said, “for a total of almost $100,000 on trying to find my relatives. What do we need for the government of the Bahamas, the police and their big chiefs to help us find our relatives?
“I believe they are treating us this way because we are not Bahamians. We just need to find out what happened to our family. We just need justice. We just need closure. We just need somebody to help us. After all this time has passed, still no one has been locked up or even answered us.
“I have called authorities in Grand Bahama, Assistant Commissioner Anthony Ferguson, the Commissioner (Ellison) Greenslade and the CDU chief and I can’t seem to get anyone.”
Attempts were made to contact police officials for a response, but up to press time no calls were returned to The Tribune.
Mr Gumus’ unwavering pursuit of his relatives, he said, has further left him vulnerable to extortion from people in the Bahamas claiming to have belongings of the missing men.
Following a story on this incident published by The Tribune in May, Mr Gumus said a man living in New Providence claimed to know who was holding the passports of the missing men in Grand Bahama.
That man, Mr Gumus said, requested that he wire him $300 in return for the passports. However despite sending the money, Mr Gumus said he still does not have the Turkish passports. The man recently contacted Mr Gumus for more money saying the person in possession of the documents required an additional $200 before the passports could be handed over, Mr Gumus claimed.
“The man said he saw the passports, that there were two red Turkish passports and that someone in Freeport would have them. I promised to give them $500 once we got to Freeport on Monday to get the passports,” he said.
Up to this point, there has been no success, he told The Tribune.
Mr Oral and Mr Oskan were working illegally in Grand Bahama before they attempted to be smuggled into the United States.
Reportedly, they had been encouraged by a local businessman in Grand Bahama who told the pair that they would be making “more money” if they were in the US. It is alleged that they were promised safe passage into Miami for $6,000. The men reportedly each paid the fee and were bundled into a go-fast boat with 10 Dominicans, and seven Jamaicans on March 9, 2012.
In a bizarre twist, back in May, Mr Gumus said a woman who is not known to his family had several times answered the cell phone of his nephew Veysi.
Last year, a US Coast Guard official in an email to Mr Gumus confirmed the discovery of a wallet with Huseyin’s identification 26 miles off the coast of Fort Pierce, Florida.
Comments
GrassRoot 9 years, 7 months ago
our government does not give a shit about these people that is the simple truth. Sad for these families. Unfortunately the life of a person in the Bahamas comes with a small price tag. That is what fundamentally sets us apart from a civilized society.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 7 months ago
A friend was telling me just yesterday about an unrelated story about a young man from his neighbourhood, he concluded his statement by saying, but he's been missing for six years now. If the last person they saw went to great lengths to hide their trail they won't be found. Thats the sad truth. On a second point, There are 200+ people from that Malaysian airlines jet missing at sea that multiple governments have been trying to find for months and have been unable to. Have they found that aircraft that crashed off ?Jamaica yet? And they actually know the approximate coordinates!! The ocean is vast, constantly shifting and it doesn't give up secrets quickly.
If these men took an ill conceived trip on a less than sea worthy vessel to enter the US illegally anything could have happened.what the government is supposed to do,I don't know...
larry 9 years, 7 months ago
" last year a US Coast Guard official in an email to Mr Guumus confirmed the discovery of a wallet with Huseyin's identification 26 miles of Fort Pierce, Florida." is that not evidence that he maid it to the United States come on read and understand Bahamas.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 7 months ago
No it's not. It's only evidence that he was in the water somewhere between the Bahamas and Florida, but that's it. The tide could have brought it further to shore. I hope Mr Gumus gets some closure eventually on exactly what happened to his relative, not knowing is torture. And yes please look out for extortionists, they exist all over the world including the Bahamas.
birdiestrachan 9 years, 7 months ago
This person seems to have much information and he has been in contact with persons in Grand Bahama and Nassau. along with the Company they were working with. they should give this information to the Police. It is wrong to say the Police are not working on this case I am sure they are. Besides God alone knows how many persons lose their lives on boats trying to enter the USA.
licks2 9 years, 7 months ago
I don't know why we would expected any different from a government who "outsourced" it garbage trucks to members in its party's cabinet and turn around and pay those party members 30. 000 a month plus government agreed to provide the fuel for the trucks to boot to provide the service that government was getting free prior!!! Candia Dames need to get on this case!
This thing gets "darker" by the minute!! You think thats what Wells have on them why they een fooling with his job???
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 7 months ago
I'm wondering if the same thing was done with the contracts for the maintenance of the roadsides. It's ridiculous, It's not uncommon now to see one lone man with a single lawn mower, mowing a vast stretch of grass. During the previous administration it was a common sight to see an entire crew cutting tree limbs and bagging debris. How are these contracts being awarded? What is going on at the Ministry Of Works?
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 7 months ago
Was the cellphone a local number? BTC recycles those but should be easy enough to verify.
JPryce 9 years, 7 months ago
My brother Howard Pryce mysteriously disappeared on March 9th also. Along with 10 Jamaicans, 2 Turkish, and 7 Dominicans and 1 Bahamian. he was also promised safe passage to Florida by a known smuggler called 'Klement'. We have given the officials tons of information and yet they continue to tell us the same thing even after 2 years 'we are still investigating'. We don't believe they have actively done anything to help bring closure or justice to our situation. Illegal or not, these men are humans, fathers, brothers, husbands and even grandfathers. They all have families that are now torn apart because of this. We only want answers... Is this too much to ask in the Bahamas? We do believe that the lack of interest in this case is because the men involved were of different nationalities. Sad. if anyone has any info that can help shed any light on this case please feel free to contact myself at 909-440-7375. Or Mr Gumus at 416-875-6447. WE WILL NEVER GIVE UP.
proudloudandfnm 9 years, 7 months ago
So yet another foreigner using the Bahamas to get to the USA. And they're mad because we are not investigating? We have more important things to do man...
Let the Americans investigate since it's their problem...
JPryce 9 years, 7 months ago
That's a big part of the problem right there...YOU HAVE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO...Wow!
JPryce 9 years, 7 months ago
Mr Gumus has provided plenty of incriminating smuggling ring evidence and proof to the Bahamian authorities, yet no action has been taken against the individuals who are clearly responsible. We have given them PLENTY of leads that they haven't followed...Mr Gumus also believes that these men may have been involved in illegal organ trafficking and possibly captured our families to kill them and take their kidneys. Your authorities consider this ludicrous when in fact according to the World Health Organization, the illegal trade in kidneys has risen to such a level that an estimated 10,000 black market operations involving purchased human organs now take place annually. BAHAMAS IS NOT EXEMPT!
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